Posts Tagged: Wittko Francke

UC Davis-Based Symposium to Celebrate Life and Legacy of Wittko Francke, 'Mozart of Molecules'

(Editor's Note: Watch the April 3rd celebration of the Life and Legacy of Wittko Franke at https://youtu.be/HHQzvaJB33U.) “Nature is more a world of scents than a source of noise.” So said renowned organic chemist Wittko Francke (1940-2020) of the University of...

Renowned organic chemist Wittko Francke met with UC Davis researchers following his Dec. 8, 2010 presentation. From left are chemical ecologist Zain Syed of the Walter Leal lab; chemical ecologist and forest entomologist Steve Seybold (1959-2019) of the USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, and the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology; and UC Davis chemical ecologist Walter Leal. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Renowned organic chemist Wittko Francke met with UC Davis researchers following his Dec. 8, 2010 presentation. From left are chemical ecologist Zain Syed of the Walter Leal lab; chemical ecologist and forest entomologist Steve Seybold (1959-2019) of the USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, and the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology; and UC Davis chemical ecologist Walter Leal. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal is organizing the symposium to celebrate the life and legacy of a giant in the chemical ecology world.

UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal is organizing the symposium to celebrate the life and legacy of a giant in the chemical ecology world.

A World of Scents

“Nature is more a world of scents than a source of noise.” That quote sound familiar? Chemical ecologist Jacques Le Magnen (1916-2002) said that back in 1970.World-renowned organic chemist Wittko Francke (right) of the University of Hamburg, Germany, called attention to Le Magnen's quote at a UC...

They Deal with Scents

World-renowned organic chemist Wittko Francke (second from right) met with UC Davis researchers following his presentation on Wednesday at a UC Davis Department of Entomology seminar. From left are chemical ecologist Zain Syed of the Walter Leal lab; chemical ecologist and forest entomologist Steve Seybold of the USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, Davis, and an affiliate of the UC Davis Department of Entomology; Wittko Francke; and chemical ecologist Walter Leal, professor and former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Heaven Scent

Talk about deception. Remember the exciting news article published in November of 2009 in Science Daily about how an orchid species on the Chinese island of Hainan "fools its hornet pollinator by issuing a chemical that honey bees use to send an alarm?" The research was first published in...

Yellowjacket

IF ORCHIDS can trick wasps to pollinate them through a chemical they produce that mimics the scent of their prey, the honey bee, can this type of research be used elsewhere? "Various species of Vespa are problems to beekeepers, because they plunder the hives," said researcher Manfred Ayasse of the University of Ulm in Germany, in discussing his published research (see above). "Besides this, their ravages of fruit crops make hornets a serious pest to man. Our results could be used to develop environmentally responsible traps for pest hornets." This is a photo of a Western yellowjacket (Vespula pensylvanica), a queen, drinking water in May of 2009 at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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